Tag for Icebreaker, but really could apply to any similar situation. Written as a prompt-fic for Samantha (aka emotionalcompass) - 'helen/declan/will- body heat'. You watch me keep this innocent! You watch me go!
I don't write a lot of Sanctuary stuff, but I'll do my best. Pointless fluff. If you see the ship, take it. If not, that's cool too.
As always, enjoy.
sanctuarysanctaurysanctuary
She's never felt so cold. The ice water still sticks to her skin, hours later, and despite the change of clothes, the smallest shift of the air makes goosebumps jump across her entire body. Her hair is still damp under her woollen cap, cold against her neck where it pokes out the bottom. Another shiver runs down her spine and from his place beside her, Will frowns. She's wedged between him and Declan, and while ordinarily she'd want to be flying the tiny plane herself, she's too cold to move, and their contracted pilot is more than capable of getting them safely to Moscow.
She shivers again.
"Magnus..."
She looks to Will, briefly, before looking forward again, tucking herself as deep as possible into her many layers.
"I've never felt so cold" she says softly, answering his unasked question.
"Ever?"
She huffs with amusement, because it's a joke and she appreciates the effort, and she hears a matching chuckle from her other side. Declan's been in his own little world most of the trip, probably concentrating on his own warmth, but he's also been noticing her uncontrollable shivers, and knows that full-body submersion is much more severe than waist-deep. He'd come to sit next to her when Henry had fallen asleep across the seats opposite, and while there were other spaces behind them that he could have taken, he squished next to her instead. She knows it's for the warmth, and she has to smile. James made a good choice, taking Declan on all those years ago.
Henry snorts a little in his sleep, and she wishes for a moment that she was HAP, if only for the fact that his physiology enabled him to warm up hours ago, tucked as he is under his blanket. If it wasn't such an awkward thing to do, she'd gladly curl up next to him to share his body heat. But he's had a long day, and as much as the cold is making her brain a little fuzzy, she doesn't disturb him.
She almost jumps out of her skin when she feels Will lowering the jacket off her shoulder.
"What on earth-!"
"You're freezing" he says forcefully, staring her down. "If you don't stop shivering soon, you're going to be sick for weeks. Short of a really hot shower, you're not getting warm any other way"
He's still holding the collar of her jacket halfway down her arm, and another chill runs through her.
"I'm fine, Will" she says, aiming for indignant and missing completely.
"Bollocks" says Declan, taking a hold of her other sleave and pushing it down her arm.
Before she can protest, they've relieved her of her jacket and draped it across her lap, and as nice as it is to have the extra warmth on her legs, her top half is suddenly very cold. She's a little dumbstruck, as she watches the two men unzip their own coats and slide a single arm out of the sleeves, and she wonders if perhaps they were communicating behind her head or something, because their movements are identical.
There's a beat of hesitation from them both, but before they can dwell, they are shifting further into her sides. Declan's arm goes over her shoulders and Will's snakes behind her back, and for a moment she feels completely embarrassed. They use the free sides and arms of the jackets as blankets across her back and shoulders, and Will takes her own jacket and tucks it higher over her lap. Declan tugs the zip of his jacket closer to the zip of Will's, and when Will figures out what he's doing, they work together to zip the separate jackets together in front of her, much like sleeping bags.
It's the strangest sandwich she's ever been in.
She immediately feels warmer, having the shared body heat in their little cocoon. They're practically sitting on top of each other to make it work, but she can feel Declan warming up a little too, so she settles into their arms and enjoys the shared heat. After a moment she feels Declan's head move higher, probably to look at Will, and she feels another wave of embarrassment wash over her at how close they really are sitting.
"You know" starts Declan, his breath tickling her ear as he talks, his hand tapping Will's shoulder from where it sits across her own, his eyes looking over her head. Her shoulder is tucked perfectly under his armpit, and she can feel his chest rise and fall as he breathes, her arm resting along his side. "I tried this move on Marcy Holden once"
She smirks. She can't stop it. She ducks her head a little to hide her face, and wets her bottom lip with her tongue before holding it with her teeth. But there is no hiding the little lurch of her shoulders as she huffs and tries to smother her chuckle.
"Oh yeah? How'd that go?" replies Will, amusement in his voice. His hip is warm against hers, his arm solid against the small of her back, his hand splayed lightly against her opposite side. His fingers flex a little when he talks, and it's a movement small enough to almost tickle. Her hand rests on his leg, and as much as she wants to be able to sit it in her own lap, the angle they're sitting at would make it incredibly uncomfortable. So she leaves it.
"Not as well as this" says Declan.
And she can't help it.
She laughs.